Chapter 7

She never saw it coming until it was too late to do anything. Riding her bike home after work, Brandi had waited for the light to change and started to roll into the intersection. There was a sound of brakes locking up and a horn. Snapping her head to look, she saw the expression of panic on the face of the driver who had ignored the red light and was about to hit her. The impact tossed Brandi into the air and she rolled across the hood of the car and off to the side where she lay sprawled on the pavement. Shouting and calls for someone to dial 911 echoed in her ears and then things went black.

The sounds of sobbing and whispers of “Madre Maria, mantenla a salvo. Te lo ruego,” gently entered Brandi’s ears as she opened her eyes. The small cubicle at the hospital emergency room was closed off by a curtain and the harsh overhead light was off. Enough light still filtered in that she could see Lupe sitting next to the bed, clutching the hand that didn’t have an IV line going in.

“What happened?” she groaned. Between the disorientation and the possibility of a minor concussion, it was hard to think. Tears started to gush down Lupe’s cheeks. “Oh sweetheart, you’re awake! How do you feel? Oh, stupid me! You were hit by a car! You must feel horrible! I’m sorry.” Brandi squeezed her hand. “When you didn’t get home, I called to see if you were working late. Julio told me that you had left work, but that you were hurt. You were brought here to be treated. I came here right away. Do you remember anything?”

“A big white car. Horn. Hurt. Nothing after.”

“The driver went through the red light and hit you. He tried to say you rode out without warning, but someone else had one of those dashboard cameras that recorded everything and gave it to the police. And a lot of people say that you waited for the light to change before you went across. When I got here I told them I’m your cousin and they gave me your backpack with your purse inside.” Lupe paused to kiss Brandi’s forehead softly. “I called your parents on your phone to tell them what happened.”

“It wasn’t broken? Wow! Well, I guess now you get to meet the family. It’s guaranteed that they are on their way down here, as we speak, and will demand I have a private room with a staff of doctors and nurses on call for my treatment. They sort of see me as their princess.” She rolled her eyes, grinning at the idea of how her father was. “Thank you. What do the doctors say?”

“While you were unconscious, they took x-rays. Nothing broken. Some bumps and bruises. Maybe a few scratches from the road that got sponge cleaned. If you had not worn your helmet, it would have been a lot worse! God was watching over you.”

“I guess so.” Closing her eyes, she muttered, “I feel so sleepy. I’m sorry.”

“Hush. Rest. I will stay here for you.”

A few hours later, a nurse poked her head around the curtain. “We can only allow one person here with a patient at a time. But, Ms. Winters’ parents are out in the waiting area. Do you want to go talk with them?”

Having seen pictures, Lupe recognized the nervous parents right away. “Mister and Missus Winters? I’m Lupe. I was the one who called you earlier. How are you doing? I can imagine how difficult this is for you.”

Brandi’s mother wrapped Lupe in a hug. “Thank you so very much for calling us. It’s one thing to have your child hurt when she’s close by so you can help, but Weed is far away and even with my husband driving like he usually does, it takes a few hours to get here. And please, call me Danielle. And this is Jason, my husband.” Brandi’s father offered his hand that she shook.

Lupe studied the parents. Danielle was tall, and she was slender to the point of being described as ‘willowy’ with red-blond hair. Hazel eyes shimmered with unshed tears. It was easy to see how much her daughter resembled her. Jason, however, was a decided contrast. Standing an inch shorter than Lupe, she recalled Brandi mentioning that in school, his nickname was “El Oso” or, “The Bear”. He was thickset, with dark brown hair and a beard. Dark brown eyes were full of concern. The two had met in high school, and it was a true study in contrasts. She had grown up on a horse ranch, while he was a computer nerd living in town. Danielle was self conscious about being five inches taller than her boyfriend but he just laughed and told her that he was proud to be the lucky guy she chose to spend time with.

Because her father was the tallest member on his side of the family, Brandi had laughed that maybe she was a genetic throwback with some Hobbit DNA. Why else was she so short?

“They said that she can only have one visitor at a time, and face masks are still mandatory. But I can wait out here with one of you while the other sees her.”

Danielle looked at her husband. “You go first, since she is still a ‘Daddy’s Girl’ and your little princess. Lupe and I will visit together out here for a while”

Watching him go, she chuckled. Now that they were in Lodi and things were nowhere as bad as they had feared, she could relax slightly and get to know this young woman. “I figure that he will be contacting a private security firm soon, so his giggle girl is surrounded by armed ex military agents with impressive weapons.”

“Giggle girl? Weapons?”

“When Brandi was a child, he called her ‘giggle girl’ because every day after work, he would come home and swoop her into his arms and spin her around, asking how her day was. She would always burst into a fit of giggles. As for the armed guards, that will be to keep the lawyers away when the idiot driver tries to settle!”

Lupe’s heart ached with longing for parents who could love a daughter so much.

“Easy, up we go. Take your time.” Jason Winters held his daughters hand as she slowly made her way up the steps to the door of the apartment. She had been released shortly before noon, to her parents and Lupe’s care. The doctor said she was fortunate that she wasn’t badly hurt, and prescribed lots of rest and a mild painkiller if it was needed. “You are going to be stiff and sore for a while. Ibuprofen should be fine to help. And a hot soak in the bathtub as well, but only if there is someone with you to keep you from slipping and hurting yourself again.” Pausing at the top of the stairs, on the open landing, she took a deep breath.